WOF Gauteng plans to intensify fire education

Fire education is the first weapon used to combat and mitigate deadly fires.

Explaining the purpose of the pre-winter fire awareness campaign to prepare communities for the winter fire season, Community Fire Awareness Officer Lerato Mokwena says,“We will be arming communities with fire education and fire safety tips as we believe fire awareness is a foundation of integrated fire management.”

The focus of the fire awareness campaign was on the rural areas of the northern region of the province where communities were mostly surrounded by farms and nature reserves with potential fuel.

She says people burn garbage without attending to the fires and that poses serious risks.

“There is a need to prepare the communities about fighting fires through education. Knowledge is power. We are also appealing to communities to allow us to engage and share knowledge with them concerning fires,” Mokwena says.